Comb



May Z4, 1949. A. B. MENSING i v 2,471,279

COMB

Filed Nov. v26, 194s l ,A 11 75H ORNEYS Patented May 24, 1949 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 4 Claims.

This invention relates to new and useful improvements in combs especially designed to assist the laymen in cutting their own hair or that of other persons.

An object of the invention is to provide a simple, eiiicient, durable, attractive, economical device which can be made of any suitable but cheap material at low cost.

A further object is to provide a device which is so constructed that the scissors may be directed easily and with no particular skill on the part of the operator to cut the hair smoothly and to avoid the usual chopped appearance resulting when an amateur does the cutting.

A further object is to provide a structure whereby the layman may easily cut the hair long or short and may cut that at the back of the head as easily as the more visible portions at the front and sides thereof.

Further and lmore specific objects, features, and advantages will more clearly appear from a consideration f the specification hereinafter set forth especially when taken in connection with the accompanying drawings which illustrate a present preferred form which the invention may assume and which form part of the specication.

Generally stated the invention comprises an oval dish shaped body of sufficient thickness to enable comb teeth to be cut in its lower half. Preferably the body is slightly thicker at its center so that the teeth will be tapered toward their free ends and the back or opposite edge of the comb body may be rounded off. It will be seen that in this construction I provide a comb of oval outline which is curved slightly along its major axis and also in a direction at right angles thereto. Consequently the two edges of the body are each compound curves formed by the primary oval outline, the secondary bending or arching of the body lengthwise and thirdly the dishing or distortion of the body in a crosswise direction. The tops of the comb teeth lie along a line approximately coincident with the major axis of the body and the curved lower edge of the latter causes the teeth at each side of the center to become progressively shorter while the transverse curvature of the body provides such shorter teeth with a lessening pronouncement of curvature as the ends of the comb are approached. The front edge of the solid portion at the base of the teeth is tapered to pointed edges to act as self-cleaning edges and to guide the hair more accurately at the bases of the comb teeth. The outer edge of the solid portion may be reversely curved along its medial portion to lie closely in conformity to the rear curve of the neck when desired and to act as a stabilizing base against the back of the neck when the comb is to be pivoted around such a base to swing the outer ends of the teeth away from the bases of the hair when the hair is to be cut long. The top surface of this dished shell thus will be a base along which the scissors may be accurately guided to cut the protruding hair in smooth curves more conformable to the work of a professional barber than would ordinarily be the case. The variable width of the device enables the shorter portions to be used in trimming parts of the head which are more inaccessible such as behind the ears. Likewise the more pointed ends of the comb facilitate trimming of eyebrows, or mustache.

The present preferred form which the invention may assume is illustrated in the drawings, of'which,

Fig. 1 is a front elevation of the comb;

Fig. 2 is a horizontal section taken on the line 2 2 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a vertical section taken on the line 3-3 of Fig. 1; and

Fig, 4 is a front elevation, partly broken away, 0f a modied form of the comb.

Referring hereafter to the particular form of the comb device shown in the drawings, it will be seen that it comprises a body portion IIJ in the form preferably of an elongated oval having a long major axis and a shorter transverse minor axis. As shown in the Figure 1 the body IU is divided along its major axis into two parts, that on one side of the axis is solid as at Il and that on the other side of the axis is formed as a series of teeth l2 which, because of the oval shape, are longer at the middle of the device and shorter toward the ends thereof.

As shown in the cross section of Figure 3, the solid portion Il of the device is pointed at its front edge I3 forming the bottoms between the teeth and the outer ends of the teeth l2 are tapered almost to a point as at I5. The rear I4 of the solid portion of the comb body may be round or of any other convenient shape.

As clearly shown in Fig. 2 the oval body of the comb is bent in a smooth regular curve likewise bent on the major axis and along a shorter curve along the minor axis as seen in Fig. 3. This gives a sort of domed effect to the structure so that in use it may be placed to conform quite closely to the curves of different portions of the head against which it lies in the act of cutting the hair.

The outer edge of the solid portion Il may be smoothly curved or may have a medial reverse curve as seen at I6 ln Fig. 4 to enable the back portion to be disposed and pressed closely against the back of the neck in cutting the hair around the rear of the head above the neck and to be pivoted around this curved portion of a persons anatomy as the hair is cut either long or short. This portion I6 thus acts as a stabilizer to assist the regular cutting action when the parts being cut cannot be directly observed by the user.

As thus constructed the device acts as a ternplate to assist the layman to speedily and selectively cut his own or anothers hair, as in so doing the operator avoids the irregular chopped" appearance of hair cut by amateurs. The elon gated inverted dish-shaped shell permits it to be positioned closely to the scalp at substantially all portions thereof. The tapered edge of the solid body portion along the center axis acts as a self-cleaning structure and also as a sharp edge to engage the base of the hairs and hold them at the desired angle from the scalp when the comb is advanced through the hair somewhat like a plow.

As the comb is advanced into the hair at any region the curvature of its teeth will cause them to lie close to the scalp and according to the angle at which the comb is held will cause the ends of the individual hairs to protrude more or less at right angles to the scalp while being accurately alined. By tilting the device to and from the scalp at the outer ends of the teeth the selected portions of the hair may be accurately cut either long or short with the same eliciency and sureness. The curvature of the comb along both of its axes will insure that the scissors in cutting along its top edge as a guide will out the protruding hairs along smooth curved lines and avoid the irregular chopped appearances usually resulting when a layman does the job with an ordinary comb. The relative narrowness of the device and its tapering ends makes it possible to cut hair at all parts of the head with equal facility.

While the invention has been described in detail with respect to a present preferred form which the invention may assume, it is not to be limited to such form or details since many changes and modifications may be made in the invention without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention in its broadest aspects. Hence it is desired to cover any and all forms and modifications of the invention which may come within the language or scope of any one or more of the appended claims.

What I claim as my invention, is:

1. A comb comprising an oval dish-shaped body provided with teeth in one edge.

2. A barbers comb comprising a body oval in shape and arched lengthwise of its major and minor axes, its two longer edges being in the form of compound curves, said body being provided with teeth formed by a series of parallel slots extending inwardly from one of said longer edges.

3. A barbers comb comprising an oval body arched, in cross section, in the direction of its major axis and having teeth formed along one edge by parallel slots extending inwardly from said edge and terminating approximately at said major axis.

4. A barbers comb comprising an oval body dish-shaped with respect to its major and minor axes, said body being provided with teeth formed by parallel slots extending inwardly from one of said edges to a mid point of the body substantially coincident with said major axis.

ANTON B. MENSING.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the iile of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,025,156 Potter May 7, 1912 1,551,160 Laufe Aug. 25, 1925 1,811,271 Ingram June 23, 1931 2,264,346 Tupper Dec. 2, 1941 

